WHOLE BRAIN LEARNING SYSTEM

OUTCOME-BASED EDUCATION

SCIENCE GRADE
General Biology 2 12

3
LEARNING QUARTER

MODULE WEEK 5
 MODULE IN
GENERAL BIOLOGY 2

QUARTER 3

WEEK 5

Patterns of Descent with

Modification
Development of Evolutionary
Thought
Development Team

Writers: Lenor M. Tunac Keziah Faye M. Arellano

Macki A. Soneda
Editors/ Reviewers: Elizabeth H. Domingo Hamilton C. Remigio
Illustrator: Ryan James J. Pascual
Lay-out Artist: Ryan James J. Pascual
Management Team: Vilma D. Eda, CESO V
Arnel S. Bandiola Lourdes B. Arucan
Juanito V. Labao Flenie A. Galicinao

o
WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 1
 What I Need to Know

This module gives you an overview of patterns of descent with modification and
development of evolutionary thought. Lesson 1 gives you an understanding that organisms
exhibit patterns of descent with modification from common ancestors (also known as
evolution) and that evolution can account for the organismal diversity observed today. Lesson
2 allows you to appreciate and understand the events, people, and their contributions to the
development of evolutionary thought. After completing the lessons and activities, you are
expected to become the learner as expected and required by the following:

Most Essential Learning Competencies:

1. Show patterns of descent with modification from common ancestors to produce the
organismal diversity observed today; and
2. Trace the development of evolutionary thought.

Lesson 1 Objectives
At the end of the module, you shall be able to:
• define species according to the biological species concept;
• distinguish the various types of reproductive isolating mechanisms that can lead to
speciation;
• discuss the different modes of speciation; and
• explain how evolution produces a tremendous amount of diversity among organisms.

Lesson 2 Objectives
At the end of the module, you shall be able to:
• enumerate the scientists and cite their respective contributions in the development of
evolutionary thought,
• describe Jean Baptiste Lamarck hypothesis on evolutionary change;
• discuss Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection; and
• explain the Modern Synthesis as the unified theory of evolution.

This module contains lessons on:

Lesson 1 Patterns of Descent with Modification

Lesson 2 Development of Evolutionary Thought

Note: All answers to activities and assessments must be written on a separate sheet of paper.

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 2

 What I Know

Directions: Read the following items and choose the letter of the correct answer from the
choices given below. Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.

A. First statement is TRUE while the second statement is FALSE.

B. First statement is FALSE while the second statement is TRUE.
C. Both statements are TRUE.
D. Both statements are FALSE.

1. The biological species concept defines a species as members of populations that actually
or potentially interbreed in nature, not according to the similarity of appearance. Although
appearance helps identify species, it does not define species.
2. Prezygotic Mechanisms prevent the formation of viable zygotes. Postzygotic mechanisms
prevent hybrids from passing on their genes.
3. Geographical isolation occurs when a chemical barrier separates populations. In some
cases, there is no barrier other than great distance.
4. Temporal isolation represents another way in which populations living in the same area
can be prevented from mating. Different populations may be ready to mate at similar times
of the year.
5. Sympatric speciation occurs when members of a population that initially occupy the same
habitat within the same range diverge into two or more different species. It involves abrupt
genetic changes that quickly lead to the reproductive isolation of a group of individuals.
6. Thomas Robert Malthus was known for the community growth philosophies outlined in his
1798 book "An Essay on the Principle of Population." Malthus theorized that populations
would continue expanding until growth is stopped or reversed by disease, famine, war, or
calamity.
7. Lamarck argued that form determined function and that the less an organ is used, the
larger it grows. Increased use has the opposite effect.
8. The theory of evolution by natural selection, first formulated in Darwin's book "On the
Origin of Species" in 1859, is the process by which organisms change over time as a result
of changes in heritable physical or behavioral traits. Changes that allow an organism to
better adapt to its environment will help it survive and have fewer offspring.
9. According to Charles Darwin, new species descended from only a few lifeforms that had
been modified over time. This "descent with modification," as he called it, forms the
backbone of his Theory of Evolution, which posits that the development of new types of
organisms from preexisting types of organisms over time is how certain species evolve.
10. Charles Darwin set out on the HMS Eagle. His observations while the Eagle sailed around
South America became the basis for his theory of natural selection.

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 3

 Lesson Patterns of Descent with
1 Modification

What’s In

Let us have a review of the mechanisms that produce a change in populations from
generation to generation so you can better understand the patterns of Descent with
Modification. Below are pictures that can lead you to enumerate the mechanisms that produce
a change in populations from generation to generation. Identify each pattern of descent with
modification.

1. 4.

____________________________ ______________________________

2.

____________________________

5.

______________________________
3.

_____________________________

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 4

 What’s New

SPECIATION

requires maybe

Reproductive
Barriers

New species form by speciation, in which an ancestral population splits into two or
more genetically distinct descendant populations. Speciation involves reproductive isolation
of groups within the original population and accumulation of genetic differences between the
two groups. Species are kept distinct from one another by prezygotic and postzygotic barriers.
These barriers keep organisms of different species from mating to produce fertile offspring,
acting before and after the formation of a zygote, respectively. These barriers maintain
the reproductive isolation of species.

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 5

 What is It

Speciation
Speciation refers to the evolutionary process of the formation of a new species. It is
also defined as the process of species formation. When a new species arises from a single
species, it is known as intraspecific speciation. When two different species give rise to a new
species, it is known as interspecific speciation/or hybridization. For example, are the mule, a
cross between a female horse and a male donkey, and the hinny, a cross between a female
donkey and a male horse. The new species is usually better adapted to the environment it
lives in. Hence, It is a better chance of survival and reproductive success.

Biological Species Concept

The most common species concept in the biological literature is Mayer's
[1970] Biological Species Concept. “Species are groups of interbreeding natural populations
that are reproductively isolated from other such groups.” It means that species refer to
populations of organisms that are capable of interbreeding among themselves under natural
conditions (and do not interbreed with members of other species), producing viable fertile
offspring.
Species is one of the basic units or smallest group of classification of biodiversity. They
share similar appearances, characteristics, and genetics because of common ancestors.
Differences in morphology, body function, behavior, genetic makeup, and biochemistry are
also used to define species.
The other prominent and relevant definitions are
• whether individuals look similar (morphological species concept),
• how closely related individuals are evolutionarily (phylogenetic species
concept), and
• whether the individual use or can use the same set of biological resources; in
other words, whether they occupy the same “niche” (ecological species
concept).
Today, most biologists define species using the biological species concept. If
interbreeding with another species does occur, the hybrid offspring are used fairly infertile or
handicapped.

Problems in Defining Species

There are some limitations in using the biological species concept to define species.
a. It cannot be applied to organisms that reproduce solely by asexual reproduction, like
bacteria and protozoa. Some plants can only propagate by asexual methods, for
example, using stem or leave cuttings, plantlets, rhizomes, bulbs, and runners.
b. It is difficult to say if extinct fossilized organisms can interbreed with each other or
whether they can breed with present species. Hence, organisms that do not occur
together in time cannot be evaluated.
c. Hybrids are formed from two different species. When the chromosomes of the hybrids
double, they become fertile and can reproduce sexually.
d. Many botanists feel that the biological species concept fits animals better because
many plants reproduce asexually.

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 e. It is impossible to know if the organisms can interbreed if they are geographically
isolated.
f. If mating is carried out in captivity, the results may not be the same as in nature. The
number of breeding experiments needs to be numerous before determining whether
the organisms are of the same species.
g. Some organisms have different forms and occupy different niches at different stages
of their lifecycle. These different forms can be mistaken as from different species. For
example, the adult butterfly is very much different in the form with its larval stage, the
caterpillar.

Reproductive Isolating Mechanisms

Reproductive isolation occurs when barriers prevent two populations from
interbreeding – keeping their gene pools separate.
There are two main categories of reproductive isolation barriers:
• Prezygotic isolation – occurs before fertilization can occur (no offspring are
produced)
• Postzygotic isolation – occurs after fertilization (offspring are either not viable or
infertile)

Reproductive Isolation Mechanism

A. Pre-zygotic isolation mechanisms prevent fertilization and zygote formation.

1. Geographic or Ecological or Habitat Isolation – potential mates occupy different
areas or habitats thus, they never come in contact.
2. Temporal or Seasonal Isolation – different groups may not be reproductively
mature at the same season, or month or year.
3. Behavioral Isolation – patterns of courtship are different.
4. Mechanical Isolation – differences in reproductive organs prevents successful
interbreeding.
5. Gametic Isolation – incompatibilities between egg and sperm prevent fertilization.
B. Post-zygotic isolation mechanisms allow fertilization but nonviable or weak or sterile
hybrids are formed.
1. Hybrid Inviability – fertilized egg fails to develop past the early embryonic stages.
2. Hybrid Sterility – hybrids are sterile because gonads develop abnormally or there
is abnormal segregation of chromosomes during meiosis.
3. Hybrid Breakdown - F1 hybrids are normal, vigorous, and viable, but F2 contains
many weak or sterile individuals.

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 7

 Table 1. Reproductive Isolating Mechanisms

https://ib.bioninja.com.au/_Media/isolating-mechanisms_med.jpeg

Modes of speciation
The classification of the modes or types of speciation is based on how much the
geographical separation of the original population contributes to the reduced gene flow and
ultimately, the formation of new species.

The modes of speciation are:

A. Allopatric Speciation
• Allopatric speciation is the mode of speciation in which the original population is
divided into two by a barrier resulting in reproductive isolation.
• The model for allopatric speciation was presented by Mayr.
• It is based on the concept that new species arise when some physical geographic
barrier divides the large population of a species into two or more small populations.
• The individuals of these isolated populations cannot interbreed because of their
physical isolation.
• Physical isolation might occur either due to physical barriers like vast expanses of
ocean, high mountains, glaciers, deep river valleys, wide rivers or deserts, or a
considerable distance due to a larger geographical range.
• Each isolated population starts to adapt to their separated environments while
accumulating differences and evolving independently into new species.

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 8

 • Allopatric speciation can occur even in cases in which the barrier allows some
individuals to cross the barrier to mate with the members of the other groups.
• For speciation even to be considered “allopatric,” gene flow between the soon-to-be
species must be significantly reduced—but it doesn’t have to be entirely reduced to
zero.

Examples of Allopatric speciation

• The classic example of allopatric speciation is that of Darwin's finches. The divergent
populations of finches inhabiting the Galapagos Islands were observed to have
differences in features such as body size, color, and beak length or shape. The
differences resulted because of the different types of food available on various
Islands.
• Another example is Grand Canyon Squirrels which were separated during the
formation of the Grand Canyon and resulted in two different species of squirrels.

Over millions of years, each species of finch

developed a unique beak that is specially adapted
to the kinds of food it eats. Because they are
isolated, the birds don’t breed with one another and
have therefore developed into unique species with
unique characteristics.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ae/Darwin%27s_finches_by_Gould.jpg

Abert squirrel (left) on the southern rim

of the Grand Canyon. Kaibab squirrel
(right) was found on the northern rim of
the Grand Canyon.
NPS Photo by Sally King -

B. Peripatric Speciation
• Peripatric speciation is a special condition of allopatric speciation which occurs when
the size of the isolated subpopulation is small.
• In this case, in addition to geographic separation, genetic drift also plays an important
as genetic drift acts more quickly in small populations.
• The small, isolated subpopulation might carry some rare genes which upon reaching
the new geographical region become fixed throughout a few generations as a result
of genetic drift.
• As a result, the entire population of the new region ends up having these rare genes.
• Over time, new genetic characters, as well as natural selection, cause the survival of
individuals who are better suited to the climate and food of the new region.
• Finally, under the influence of all these factors, new species are formed.

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• However, it is very difficult to explain what role genetic drift played in the divergence
of the two populations, which makes gathering evidence to support or refute this mode
very challenging.

Examples of Peripatric speciation

• The Australian bird Petroica multicolor and London Underground mosquito, a variant
of the mosquito Culex pipiens, which entered the London Underground in the 19th
century are examples of Petripatric speciation.

C. Parapatric Speciation
• Parapatric speciation is a mode of speciation in which there is no extrinsic barrier
between the population but, the large geographic range of the population causes the
individuals to mate with the neighboring individuals than with the individuals in a
different part of the geographical range.
• In this case, the population is continuous, but the population doesn’t mate randomly.
• Here, the genetic variation occurs as a result of reduced gene flow within the
population and varying selection pressures across the population’s range.
• This occurs in a population that is distributed over a large geographical range. Thus,
the individuals in the far west region cannot mate with the individuals in the far east
region.
• Through a few generations, new species might be formed within the existing
population.

Examples of Parapatric speciation

• The grass species Anthoxanthum odoratum where some species living near the mine
have become tolerant to heavy metals; however, other plants that don’t live around
the mines are not tolerant.
• But because the plants are close together, they could fertilize each other and result in
a new species.

D. Sympatric Speciation
• Sympatric speciation is the process of the formation of new species from an original
population that are not geographically isolated.
• It is based on the establishment of new populations of a species in different ecological
niches and the reproductive isolation of founders of the new population from the
individuals of the source population.
• Gene flow between daughter and parental population during sympatric speciation is
postulated to be inhibited by intrinsic factors, such as chromosomal changes and non-
random mating.
• Exploiting a new niche might automatically reduce gene flow with individuals exploiting
a different niche.
• This mode of speciation is common in herbivore insects when they begin feeding and
mating on a new plant or when a new plant is introduced within the geographical range
of the species.
• The gene flow is then reduced between the species that specialize in a particular plant
which might ultimately lead to the formation of new species.

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 • The selection resulting in specialization needs to be strong for the population to
diverge.
• Thus, sympatric speciation is a sporadic event in multicellular organisms or randomly
mating populations.

Examples of Sympatric speciation

• Sympatric speciation is observed in apple maggot flies which 200 years ago laid eggs
and bred only on hawthorns but now lays eggs on both hawthorns and domestic
apples.
• As a result, gene flow between parts of the population that mate on different types of
fruit is reduced, and in fewer than 200 years, some genetic differences between these
two groups of flies have evolved.

Modes of Speciation

Evolution produces a tremendous amount of diversity among organisms.

Present-day species evolved from earlier species and that the relatedness of
organisms is the result of common ancestry. This can be supported by morphological and
anatomical data, homology, biogeography, DNA and protein sequences (molecular data), and
embryology.

What’s More

Identification. Based on the descriptions, identify the given isolating mechanisms:

1. Two species of garter snakes live in the same region, but one lives in water and the
other on land.

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 11

 2. Two species of meadowlarks with different mating songs
3. Two species of trout that breed in different seasons.

Based on the descriptions, identify the mode of speciation:

4. The hemp nettle, Galeopsis tetrahit is a tetraploid found to thrive in the same area as
two other diploids species, Galeopsis pubescens, and Galeopsis speciosa.
5. The Panama porkfish, Anisotremus taeniatus, found in the Pacific Ocean is
morphologically similar to the porkfish, Anisotremus virginiacus, found in the
Caribbean Sea are separated by a land bridge between North and South America
called the Isthmus of Panama.

What I Have Learned

• According to the biological species concept, organisms belong to the same species if
they can interbreed to produce viable, fertile offspring.
• Species are separated from one another by prezygotic and postzygotic barriers,
which prevent mating or the production of viable, fertile offspring.
• Speciation is the process by which new species form. It occurs when groups in a
species become reproductively isolated and diverge.
• Allopatric Speciation or Geographic Speciation (allo – other, patric – place; ‘other
place’) occurs when some members of a population become geographically separated
from the other members thereby preventing gene flow. Examples of geographic
barriers are bodies of water and mountain ranges.
• Sympatric Speciation (sym – same, patric – place; 'same place') - occurs when
members of a population that initially occupy the same habitat within the same range
diverge into two or more different species. It involves abrupt genetic changes that
quickly lead to the reproductive isolation of a group of individuals. An example is a
change in chromosome number (polyploidization).
• Parapatric Speciation (para – besides, patric – place; ‘beside each other’) – occurs
when the groups that evolved to be separate species are geographic neighbors. Gene
flow occurs but with great distances is reduced. There is also abrupt change in the
environment over a geographic border and strong disruptive selection must also
happen.
• Peripatric speciation (peri - around/near, patric – place; ‘around/near fatherland’) is a
mode of speciation in which a new species is formed from an isolated peripheral
population. Since peripatric speciation resembles allopatric speciation, in that
populations are isolated and prevented from exchanging genes, it can often be difficult
to distinguish between them.

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 12

 Lesson Development of
2 Evolutionary Thought

What’s In

Let us have a review of the previous lesson. Below are pictures that can lead you to enumerate
the reproductive isolating mechanisms and modes of speciation. Identify the given
reproductive isolating mechanisms and modes of speciation.

1. ______________________ 2. ______________________

3. ___________________ 4. ___________________ 5. ___________________

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 13

 What’s New

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/23/ca/c1/23cac1118dd0515d529fb99b1448b6e4.png

Evolution explains the present diversity of plants and animals that arose from the
earliest in primitive organisms. Several scientists and thinkers have contributed to the
development of evolutionary thought that helps us understand better the evolution of life on
Earth.

What is It
Development of evolutionary thought

17th Century

John Ray: the "species" concept. The first scientist (in the modern sense of the word) to
carry out a thorough study of the natural world was the Englishman John Ray (1627 - 1705).
Ray was a brilliant student who, unusually for his time, did not take holy orders on completing
his degree at Cambridge (largely due to the social and religious upheavals associated with
the Civil War, but also because of his own beliefs). Forced to resign his Fellowship at the
university, he was sponsored by his friend Francis Willughby (1635 - 1672), who shared Ray's
scientific interests, to develop his catalogs of the living world. Ray's particular interests lay with

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 14

plants, for which he developed an early classification system based on physiology and
anatomy. During this work Ray established the modern concept of a species, noting that
organisms of one species do not interbreed with members of another, and used it as the basic
unit of taxonomy.
Ray also studied fossils, recognizing them as having formed from once-living organisms, and
grappled with the contradictions between the Biblical account of creation and the evidence of
change and extinction that he saw in his fossils. Deeply religious, he rejected any possibility
of an old and changing Earth, as did all scholars of his time.

18th Century

Carl Linnaeus & the modern taxonomic system. Ray's ideas on taxonomy were picked up
and extended by the better-known Carl Linnaeus (1707 - 1778). He was fascinated by plants,
paying botany much more attention than was required for his medical studies at university,
and took up the new idea that plants reproduced sexually, using differences in reproductive
structures to develop a system for classifying plants. He moved on to study animals, and to
help make sense of the huge volume of data accumulated during his teaching and research
gave all his specimens a descriptive Latin binomial, or two-word, name. Linnaeus used these
names systematically in his classification system, which he published as "Systema naturae".
The "Systema" built on Ray's earlier work and cataloged the diversity of living things cohesively
and logically - the now-familiar hierarchical way of arranging organisms, from the all-inclusive
Kingdoms through Classes and Orders to the Genus and Species of each living thing.
Linnaeus went so far as to include humans in his system and believed that humans and the
great apes were so closely related that they should be placed in the same genus. However,
he didn't do so, to avoid contradicting church teachings.
Although a religious man who believed that all species were created together, Linnaeus still
gave some thought to the apparent age of the Earth. Fossils were now well-accepted as the
remains of past creatures, sometimes found far from the sea, and he was uncertain that this
distribution could have been achieved in the time provided by the Biblical flood. He was not
alone in this, as contemporary scholars of both science and history were beginning to question
the calculations of Archbishop Ussher that gave the age of the Earth 6000 years.
Buffon on evolution and the age of the Earth. The Frenchman Georges Louis Leclerc,
Comte de Buffon (1707 - 1788), was both intellectually brilliant and extremely hard-working
(though he viewed himself as naturally lazy) and produced an enormous body of work over
his lifetime. He set out the current knowledge of the whole of natural history in the 44-volume
"Natural History" ("Histoire Naturelle"), a series that greatly increased popular interest in
science. He also contributed to the debate over the age of the Earth (begun by Isaac Newton),
suggesting that our planet had formed in a molten state and that its gradual cooling must have
taken far longer than the 6000 years Ussher and other theologians allowed (or the 50,000
permitted by Newton). In fact, unlike previous scientists, Buffon attempted to answer this
question by experimental means, something that has been described as "a landmark event in
science" (John Gribbin, 2002).
Buffon also considered the concept of evolution - a concept that was in circulation long before
Charles Darwin provided a mechanism by which evolution could occur - wondering about the
role of vestigial organs, which appeared to give the lie to the idea that creation achieved
perfection of form, and about the possibility of species descending from earlier ancestors.

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Erasmus Darwin's thoughts on evolution. Charles was not the first in his family to consider
the concept of evolution. His grandfather Erasmus Darwin (1731 - 1802) was a successful
country doctor who published widely in many scientific fields. He was also a poet, and his book
"The Loves of the Plants" introduced the public to the intricacies of plant taxonomy and
reproduction. Another book, "Zoonomia", set out Erasmus' ideas on evolution. He was aware
that modern species were different from fossil types and also saw how plant and animal
breeders used artificial selection to enhance their products. He knew that offspring inherited
features from their parents, and went so far as to say that life on Earth could be descended
from a common ancestor. While Erasmus believed in the original creation of life, his God was
"hands-off" from that point on. His ideas were not widely accepted in England, but in France
Lamarck was developing similar views of evolutionary change.
However, Lamarck's ideas were also to be rejected, and to understand why we need to look
at the role played by Georges Cuvier.
Cuvier's contribution to paleontology. Georges Cuvier (1769 - 1832) was interested in
biology from childhood, an interest that he developed further while living in the French
countryside during the Revolution. He read both Linnaeus and Buffon and worked on his ideas
on classification and taxonomy, before joining the Museum of Natural History in Paris, studying
and writing on comparative anatomy. His work was extremely useful in interpreting the remains
of fossil animals and relating them to living species. Cuvier also classified animals according
to their body plan (as vertebrates, mollusks, those with jointed exoskeletons, and those with
radial symmetry), a major advance in thinking about relationships. His extensive studies of
fossils gave rise to the science of paleontology, and he recognized that particular groups of
fossil organisms were associated with certain rock strata. This last finding meant that it
became possible to place the strata into order by the relative age of the fossils.
The catastrophism model of Earth's history. Cuvier's palaeontological studies told him that
large numbers had become extinct. To explain this, he used the concept of catastrophism: a
series of catastrophes, one of which was recorded in the Biblical story of the flood, had caused
repeated waves of extinction. Areas were then repopulated by migration from unaffected
areas: there was no room in this model for the evolution of new species. In his view, life had
existed unchanged on Earth for hundreds of thousands of years, ever since the Creation.
Cuvier's adherence to the concept that species were "fixed" and unchanging meant that he
rejected the model of evolution developed by his fellow Frenchman, Lamarck.
James Hutton and the principle of uniformitarianism. James Hutton (1726 - 1797) made
a significant contribution to the understanding of the geological processes that shaped the
Earth. He was a keen chemist but also developed a strong interest in geology. Hutton
recognized that the Earth was extremely old. He saw that there was no need for global
catastrophes to shape the surface of the Earth. Instead, given sufficient time, the gradual
ongoing processes of erosion, sedimentation, and uplift could produce the geological features
he saw. This concept became known as the principle of uniformitarianism.
Without the concept of an extremely old, and slowly changing Earth, Darwin would not have
had the time available for his model of evolution to work. Darwin specifically applied Hutton's
concept of gradual change, or gradualism, to his model of how species evolved.
Thomas Malthus and the Principle of Population. Thomas Malthus lived from 1766 to 1834.
In 1798, he published the Principle of Population where he made the observations that the
human race would be likely to overproduce if the population size was not kept under control.

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Malthus then focused his studies on the human race. His calculations and theories produced
an idea that the human population would increase geometrically while the food supply and
natural resources would only increase arithmetically. This is a potential explanation for the
predicted poverty and famine. He concluded that as more offspring are born, a more
competitive nature would arise. As more offspring come into the population, fewer resources
will be available for the population. This has the potential for competition between organisms
for survival due to a lack of resources. This competitive nature would be necessary for the
survival of individuals within a large population size unable to be supported by the
environment. He believed that this uncontrollable population size would eventually be the
cause of famine and poverty among humans. His reasoning behind this idea was divine
intervention. He believed that this would be the punishment for man if he became too lazy.
Malthus' Principle of Population caused Darwin to rethink many issues while coming up with
his theory of natural selection. Malthus's work made Darwin realize the importance of
overpopulation and how it was necessary to have variability in different populations. Darwin
also used Malthus' ideas to use competition as well as the survival in numbers idea to come
up with his full idea of natural selection.
Lamarck's concepts of evolution and inheritance. Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (1744 - 1829)
also worked at the Natural History Museum in Paris, but his views on species were the
opposite of Cuvier's. His model of evolution proposed that individuals were able to pass to
their offspring characteristics acquired during their lifetimes. (At the time this was a perfectly
acceptable model of change, given that nothing at all was known about the processes of
inheritance.) But what annoyed Cuvier was Lamarck's proposal that species did not go extinct,
but instead evolved into another form. Lamarck went further, stating that evolution produced
more complex organisms from simple ancestors and that this process of change took time.
Etienne Geoffroy Saint-Hillaire (1772 - 1844) elaborated on Lamarck's views. Like Lamarck,
he felt that the environment could produce changes in living things, but went on to suggest
that if these changes were harmful, then the organism would die; only those well-adapted to
the environment would survive. This is a foretaste of Darwin's theory of natural selection, but
Geoffroy never went on to develop his idea further. This is because both his suggestions and
Lamarck's ideas about inheritance of acquired characteristics were thoroughly ridiculed by
Cuvier. And since Cuvier was such a prominent scientist, his attacks carried a lot of weight.
Most scientists accepted the principle of catastrophism that he championed so strongly, until
the work of Englishmen James Hutton and Charles Lyell.
Charles Darwin and the theory of evolution by natural selection. Charles Robert Darwin
(1809 - 1882) was one of six children born to Robert & Susannah Darwin. Robert was a well-
respected local doctor and also something of a private investment banker; the family was
always very well off. Charles was fascinated by science, particularly natural history, from a
young age. His father wished him to become a doctor, but the traumatic experience of
observing an operation on a non-anesthetized child caused Charles to reject that career and
he became took classes in geology and natural history, particularly marine biology.
Robert Darwin still wished his son to have a career and so arranged for him to study for the
clergy at Cambridge. Many country clergymen managed to combine their priestly duties with
an interest in natural history, so this seemed the obvious thing for Charles to do.
However, Charles once more ignored his official studies and took classes reflecting his interest
in the natural world, including botany and geology. His teachers in these courses viewed

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Darwin as an outstanding and hardworking pupil, but his father was still set on him becoming
a country parson.
The summer after he graduated from Cambridge, Charles received a letter that was to change
his life. His botany professor, John Henslow, had put his name forward to join the crew of HMS
Beagle, on a surveying expedition to South America. Contrary to the popular myth, this was
not the naturalist's position (which was filled by the ship's doctor). Instead, the Beagle's
captain, Robert FitzRoy, required a "gentleman companion" to provide company and
conversation on the voyage. FitzRoy found Darwin acceptable and the Beagle left on what
was to be a five-year voyage on December 27, 1831. Darwin was yet to turn 23.
Robert Darwin (who was paying Charles' expenses) expected that his son would settle down
on the voyage and come home ready to take up a country parish. His university tutors and
scientific friends had different expectations: Charles was to collect scientific specimens and
send them back to England. This sort of amateur collecting was a significant hobby for the
upper classes in Darwin's time - and provided a livelihood for less well-off men such as Alfred
Russel Wallace, who was later to provide the impetus for the publication of "On the Origin of
Species".
Darwin's thinking was enormously influenced by the work done by previous scientists. Not
least of these was Charles Lyell. Darwin took Lyell's "Principles of Geology" for reading matter
on the voyage. What he read, and later confirmed at first hand in South America, led him to
accept the uniformitarian approach to Earth's history. This is significant because it allowed for
the vast age of the Earth, necessary for his model of gradual evolutionary change.
Darwin traveled extensively in South America while the Beagle continued its surveying duties.
He made extensive fossil collections and noticed that these fossils were found in regions now
occupied by their slightly different descendants. This led him to think about factors affecting a
species' distribution. He also found evidence supporting Lyell's theory of gradual geological
change, such as fossils and ancient sea beds now far from the sea, and witnessed first-hand
how a large earthquake could raise the land.
He also visited the Galapagos Islands and noted how the finches and iguanas there resembled
those of the South American mainland. Contrary to the usual story, "Darwin's finches" did not
provide him with a "eureka!" moment. He noticed how the islands' giant tortoises varied from
island to island, but the significance of the varied finch species did not strike him until after his
return to England.

Darwin was greeted with considerable scientific acclaim on returning home. This was due to
the quality and quantity of the scientific specimens he brought with him, and in fact, he first
made his name as a geologist, not a biologist. Robert Darwin became resigned to the fact that
his son was going to follow his path, and Charles settled down to writing about his travels and
studying his specimens. And he began to develop his theory of evolution by natural selection
as a coherent explanation for his observations on the form and distribution of species, tying it
into the concepts developed by other thinkers such as Lyell, Lamarck, and Malthus. While he
quickly produced an outline of this theory, Darwin was to spend the next 25 years refining it
and amassing still more supporting evidence. It took a letter from Alfred Russel Wallace to
push him into publication.

18th century: Charles Lyell. Charles Lyell (1797 - 1875) went to Oxford to study mathematics
and law but turned to geology after being introduced to Hutton's work. He met Gideon Mantell,

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who had discovered several different dinosaurs in English rocks, and this led him to the serious
study of geological history. Lyell traveled widely in Europe, where he observed ancient raised
seabeds separated by lava flows, and became convinced that Hutton's model of gradual
geological change was correct. He collected a large amount of supporting evidence for
uniformitarianism and set this out in the "Principles of Geology", a book that had a tremendous
influence on Darwin. As well as building on the idea of gradual long-term natural changes as
the shaping force of the Earth's surface, Lyell considered the origins of plants and animals.
While he believed in the special creation of all species now in existence, he also recognized
that many species had become extinct and been replaced by others.
Thus, by the time Charles Darwin became interested in natural history, many of the concepts
crucial for his thinking had been developed.
Alfred Russel Wallace arrives independently at a theory of evolution. Alfred Russel
Wallace (1823 - 1913) did not have the same advantages in life as Charles Darwin. Largely
self-taught, he had always had an interest in natural history but not the funds to indulge it.
Unhappy with what was essentially a dead-end job he managed to save enough money to
fund a trip to South America, to collect specimens and sell them to wealthy private collectors.
This was a difficult life but Wallace was moderately successful. More importantly, he also
attended various scientific meetings, published papers, and began corresponding with Darwin.
While on a major expedition to South-East Asia Wallace began to give serious consideration
to how the species he was observing might have evolved. Like Darwin, he was influenced by
the ideas on limits to population size developed by Malthus. Quite independently of Darwin,
Wallace came up with the idea that the best-adapted organisms in a population would survive
to breed, passing on their adaptations to their offspring. He worked this insight up into a paper
that he sent to Darwin, asking for his comments and assistance in getting it published.
The modern synthesis. A major problem for Darwin lay in the apparent lack of a mechanism
by which features could be inherited. Gregor Mendel had developed his theory of heredity at
much the same time as Darwin was grappling with the theory of evolution by natural selection.
However, although Mendel published his findings, it seems that Darwin never read the paper.
The significance of Mendel's work wasn't properly grasped until early in the 20th century.
The "rediscovery" of Mendel's research led to the understanding of how various
characteristics, coded for in an individual's DNA, could be passed on to successive
generations. However, both Mendel and the early geneticists recognized only the classic
"either/or" states of discrete characteristics. It seemed there was no way to explain how natural
selection could operate on more subtle variations within a population.
It took the development of population genetics to reconcile Mendelism and Darwinism. As the
name suggests, population genetics examines genetic variation within populations, not
individuals, and allows an understanding of the relationship between this variation and natural
selection.
The modern synthesis, a "comprehensive theory of evolution" (Campbell & Reece, 2002), was
developed in the 1940s. It brings together information from the fields of population genetics,
paleontology, taxonomy, biogeography, and molecular biology. It "emphasizes the importance
of populations as the units of evolution, the central role of natural selection as the most
important mechanism of evolution, and the idea of gradualism to explain how large changes
can evolve as an accumulation of small changes occurring over long periods" (Campbell &
Reece, 2002: 446). While modern evolutionary biology may see a healthy debate over some

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 of the assumptions made by the modern synthesis, the underlying tenets of evolution set out
by Charles Darwin remain secure.

Jean Baptiste Lamarck Hypothesis on Evolutionary Change

Early Concepts of Evolution: Jean Baptiste Lamarck
Darwin was not the first naturalist to propose that species changed over
time into new species—that life, as we would say now, evolves. In the
eighteenth century, Buffon and other naturalists began to introduce the
idea that life might not have been fixed since creation. By the end of the
1700s, paleontologists had swelled the fossil collections of Europe,
offering a picture of the past at odds with an unchanging natural world. And
in 1801, a French naturalist named Jean Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet,
Chevalier de Lamarck took a great conceptual step and proposed a full-blown theory of
evolution.
Lamarck started his scientific career as a botanist, but in 1793 he became one of the founding
professors of the Musee National d'Histoire Naturelle as an expert on invertebrates. His work
on classifying worms, spiders, mollusks, and other boneless creatures was far ahead of his
time.
Change through use and disuse
Lamarck was struck by the similarities of many of
the animals he studied and was impressed too by
the burgeoning fossil record. It led him to argue
that life was not fixed. When environments
changed, organisms had to change their behavior
to survive. If they began to use an organ more than
they had in the past, it would increase in its lifetime.
If a giraffe stretched its neck for leaves, for
example, a "nervous fluid" would flow into its neck
and make it longer. Its offspring would inherit the Lamarck believed that the long necks of
long neck, and continued stretching would make it giraffes evolved as generations of
longer still over several generations. Meanwhile, giraffes reached for ever higher leaves.
organs that organisms stopped using would shrink.
Organisms are driven to greater complexity
This sort of evolution, for which Lamarck is most famous today, was only one of two
mechanisms he proposed. As organisms adapted to their surroundings, nature also drove
them inexorably upward from simple forms to increasingly complex ones. Like Buffon,
Lamarck believed that life had begun through spontaneous generation. But he claimed that
new primitive life forms sprang up throughout the history of life; today's microbes were simply
"the new kids on the block."

Lamarck also proposed that organisms were driven from simple to increasingly more
complex forms.

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Evolution by natural processes

Lamarck was proposing that life took on its current form through natural processes, not
through miraculous interventions. For British naturalists, in particular, steeped as they were in
natural theology, this was appalling. They believed that nature was a reflection of God's
benevolent design. To them, it seemed Lamarck was claiming that it was the result of blind
primal forces. Rejected by some on religious grounds and shunned by scientists like Cuvier for
lack of deductive rigor in his arguments, Lamarck died in 1829 in poverty and obscurity.
But the notion of evolution did not die with him. The French naturalist Geoffroy St. Hilaire would
champion another version of evolutionary change in the 1820s, and the British writer Robert
Chambers would author a best-selling argument for evolution in 1844: Vestiges of a Natural
Creation. And in 1859, Charles Darwin would publish the Origin of Species. Lamarck, St.
Hilaire, Chambers, and Darwin all had radically different ideas about how evolution operates,
but only Darwin's still have scientific currency today.
Different from Darwin
Darwin relied on much the same evidence for evolution that
Lamarck did (such as vestigial structures and artificial selection
through breeding) but made completely different arguments from
Lamarck. Darwin did not accept an arrow of complexity driving
through the history of life. He argued that complexity evolved
simply as a result of life adapting to its local conditions from one
generation to the next, much as modern biologists see this
process. But of course, Darwin's ideas weren't entirely modern
either. For example, he tried on and eventually rejected several
different ideas about heredity (including the inheritance of
acquired characteristics, as championed by Lamarck) and never
came to any satisfying conclusion about how traits were passed
from parent to offspring.
Lamarckian inheritance is an idea that today is known mainly from textbooks, where it is used
as a historical contrast for our modern understanding of genetic inheritance, which began with
the rediscovery of Mendel's work in the late 1800s. Despite all he got wrong, Lamarck can be
credited with envisioning evolutionary change for the first time.
Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection

What is evolution?
• The basic idea of biological evolution is that populations and species of organisms
change over time. Today, when we think of evolution, we are likely to link this idea with
one specific person: the British naturalist Charles Darwin.
• In the 1850s, Darwin wrote an influential and controversial book called On the Origin
of Species. In it, he proposed that species evolve (or, as he put it, undergo "descent
with modification") and that all living things can trace their descent to a common
ancestor.
• Darwin also suggested a mechanism for evolution: natural selection, in which heritable
traits that help organisms survive and reproduce become more common in a
population over time.

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Darwin and the voyage of the Beagle
• Darwin's seminal book, On the Origin of Species, set forth his ideas about evolution
and natural selection. These ideas were largely based on direct observations from
Darwin's travels around the globe. From 1831 to 1836, he was part of a survey
expedition carried out by the ship HMS Beagle, which included stops in South America,
Australia, and the southern tip of Africa. At each of the expedition's stops, Darwin had
the opportunity to study and catalog the local plants and animals.
• Throughout his travels, Darwin began to see intriguing patterns in the distribution and
features of organisms. We can see some of the most important patterns Darwin noticed
in the distribution of organisms by looking at his observations of the Galápagos Islands
off the coast of Ecuador.

_Image credit: "Darwin's finches," by John Gould (public domain)._

• Darwin found that nearby islands in the Galápagos had similar but nonidentical species
of finches living on them. Moreover, he noted that each finch species was well-suited
for its environment and role. For instance, species that ate large seeds tended to have
large, tough beaks, while those that ate insects had thin, sharp beaks. Finally, he
observed that the finches (and other animals) found on the Galápagos Islands were
similar to species on the nearby mainland of Ecuador but different from those found
elsewhere in the world.
• Darwin didn't figure all of this out on his trip. He didn't even realize all the finches were
related but distinct species until he showed his specimens to a skilled ornithologist
(bird biologist) years later. Gradually, however, he came up with an idea that could
explain the pattern of related but different finches.
• According to Darwin's idea, this pattern would make sense if the Galápagos Islands
had long ago been populated by birds from the neighboring mainland. On each island,
the finches might have gradually adapted to local conditions (over many generations
and long periods). This process could have led to the formation of one or more distinct
species on each island.

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 • During his voyage, and in the years after, Darwin developed and refined a set of ideas
that could explain the patterns he had observed during his voyage. In his book, On the
Origin of Species, Darwin outlined his two key ideas: evolution and natural selection.

Evolution
• Darwin proposed that species can change over time, that new species come from pre-
existing species, and that all species share a common ancestor. In this model, each
species has its own unique set of heritable (genetic) differences from the common
ancestor, which have accumulated gradually over very long periods. Repeated
branching events, in which new species split off from a common ancestor, produce a
multi-level "tree" that links all living organisms.
• Darwin referred to this process, in which groups of organisms change in their heritable
traits over generations, as “descent with modification." Today, we call it evolution.
Darwin's sketch above illustrates his idea, showing how one species can branch into
two over time, and how this process can repeat multiple times in the "family tree" of a
group of related species.

Modern-day species appear at the top of the chart, while the ancestors from which they arose are
shown lower in the chart. Image credit: "Darwin's tree of life," by Charles Darwin. Photograph by A.
Kouprianov, public domain.

Natural Selection
Darwin also proposed a mechanism for evolution: natural selection. This mechanism was
elegant and logical, and it explained how populations could evolve (undergo descent with
modification) in such a way that they became better suited to their environments over time.
Darwin's concept of natural selection was based on several key observations:
• Traits are often heritable. In living organisms, many characteristics are inherited, or
passed from parent to offspring. (Darwin knew this was the case, even though he did
not know that traits were inherited via genes.)
• More offspring are produced than can survive. Organisms are capable of
producing more offspring than their environments can support. Thus, there is
competition for limited resources in each generation.

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 • Offspring vary in their heritable traits. The offspring in any generation will be slightly
different from one another in their traits (color, size, shape, etc.), and many of these
features will be heritable.

Based on these simple observations, Darwin concluded the following:

• In a population, some individuals will have inherited traits that help them survive and
reproduce (given the conditions of the environment, such as the predators and food
sources present). The individuals with the helpful traits will leave more offspring in the
next generation than their peers since the traits make them more effective at surviving
and reproducing.
• Because the helpful traits are heritable, and because organisms with these traits leave
more offspring, the traits will tend to become more common (present in a larger fraction
of the population) in the next generation.
• Over generations, the population will become adapted to its environment (as
individuals with traits helpful in that environment have consistently greater reproductive
success than their peers).

Darwin's model of evolution by natural selection allowed him to explain the patterns he had
seen during his travels. For instance, if the Galápagos finch species shared a common
ancestor, it made sense that they should broadly resemble one another (and mainland finches,
who likely shared that common ancestor). If groups of finches had been isolated on separate
islands for many generations, however, each group would have been exposed to a different
environment in which different heritable traits might have been favored, such as different sizes
and shapes of beaks for using different food sources. These factors could have led to the
formation of distinct species on each island.

Modern Synthesis as the unified theory of evolution

The Modern Synthesis describes the fusion (merger) of Mendelian genetics with
Darwinian evolution that resulted in a unified theory of evolution. It is sometimes referred to
as the Neo-Darwinian theory. The Modern Synthesis was developed by several now-
legendary evolutionary biologists in the 1930s and 1940s.

The Modern Synthesis introduced several changes in how evolution and evolutionary
processes were conceived. It proposed a new definition of evolution as "changes
in allele frequencies within populations, " thus emphasizing the genetic basis of evolution.
(Alleles are alternate forms of the same gene, characterized by differences in the DNA
sequence that result in the construction of proteins that differ in amino acid composition.) Four
forces of evolution were identified as contributing to changes in allele frequencies. These are
random genetic drift, gene flow, mutation pressure, and natural selection. Of these, natural
selection—by which the best-adapted organisms have the highest survival rate—is the only
evolutionary force that makes organisms better adapted to their environments. Genetic drift
describes random changes in allele frequencies in a population. It is particularly powerful in
small populations. Gene flow describes allele frequency changes due to the immigration and
emigration of individuals from a population. The mutation is a weak evolutionary force but is
crucial because all genetic variation arises originally from mutation, alterations in the DNA
sequences resulting from errors during replication, or other factors. The Modern Synthesis

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recognized that the majority of mutations are deleterious (have a harmful effect), and that
advantageous mutation usually has a small phenotypic effect. Advantageous mutations may
be incorporated into the population through the process of natural selection. Changes in
species, therefore, occur gradually through the accumulation of small changes. The large
differences that are observed between species involve gradual change over extended periods.
Speciation (the formation of new species) results from the evolution of reproductive isolation,
often during a period of allopatry, in which two populations are isolated from one another.

There are several differences between the Modern Synthesis and the older Darwinian
conception of evolution. First, mechanisms of evolution other than natural selection are
recognized as playing important roles. Second, the Modern Synthesis succeeds in explaining
the persistence of genetic variation, a problem that Charles Darwin struggled with. The
dominant genetic theory of Darwin's time was blending inheritance, in which offspring were
thought to be the genetic intermediates (in-between versions) of their two parents. As Darwin
correctly recognized, blending inheritance would result in the rapid end of genetic variation
within a population, giving natural selection no material to work with. Incorporating Gregor
Mendel's particulate theory of inheritance, in which the alleles of a gene remain separate
instead of merging, solves this problem.

There were several key players involved in the Modern Synthesis. The theory relied
on the population genetics work of R. A. Fisher and Sewall Wright. Theodosius
Dobzhansky made extensive studies of natural populations of the fruit fly Drosophila that
supported many aspects of the theory. Ernst Mayr developed the biological species
concept and created models concerning how speciation occurs. George Gaylord
Simpson helped integrate paleontological observations into the theory behind the Modern
Synthesis. G. Ledyard Stebbins contributed tenets (principles) based on his botanical work.

Since the 1990s it has been recognized that the Modern Synthesis omits some
biological disciplines that are also relevant to evolution. In particular, much attention has
focused on patterns of ontogeny and development.

What’s More

Identification. Based on the contribution in shaping and developing evolutionary thought,

identify the early scientist:

1. Order in the diversity of life; a hierarchy of taxonomic categories

2. Essay on the Principle of Population
3. Fossils, paleontology and the theory of Catastrophism
4. Theory of Gradualism
5. Principles of geology

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 What I Have Learned

• Many scientists made a significant contribution over the years, developing the
foundation that Charles Darwin and Alfred Russell Wallace used to describe natural
selection as the mechanism for evolution.
• Jean Baptiste Lamarck (1744-1829) is one of the best-known early evolutionists.
Unlike Darwin, Lamarck believed that living things evolved in a continuous upward
direction, from dead matter, through simple to more complex forms, toward human
"perfection." Species didn't die out in extinctions, Lamarck claimed. Instead, they
changed into other species.
• Since simple organisms exist alongside complex "advanced" animals today, Lamarck
thought they must be continually created by spontaneous generation.
• Darwin’s book, The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, founded a strong
ground for evolutionary theories that favored the idea that all the organisms have
descended from a common ancestor.
• Evolution by natural selection is one of the best-substantiated theories in the history of
science, supported by evidence from a wide variety of scientific disciplines, including
paleontology, geology, genetics, and developmental biology.
• The modern synthetic theory of evolution describes evolution in terms of genetic
variations in a population that leads to the formation of a new species.
• The theory gave a new definition of evolution as “the changes occurring in the allele
frequencies within the populations,” which emphasizes the genetics of evolution.

What I Can Do

WRITTEN WORKS- Claim-Evidence-Reasoning (C-E-R)

Directions: Fill out the table below by answering the given question.
Question: Is it possible for new species to emerge in as few as two steps in the line of descent
from an ancestor?

Claim. Write a statement that

responds to the question.
Evidence. Provide scientific
data to support your claim. Your
evidence should be appropriate
(relevant) and sufficient (enough
to convince someone that your
claim is correct). This can be
bullet points instead of
sentences.
Reasoning. Use scientific
principles and knowledge that

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 26

you have about the topic to
explain why your evidence (data)
supports your claim. In other
words, explain how your data
proves your point?
(paragraph format)

Claim-Evidence-Reasoning
(C-E-R) Rubric

0 3 5 10
CLAIM Do not make a Makes an Makes an
A statement that claim, or accurate but accurate and
answers the
original
question/problem.
makes an
inaccurate
claim.
incomplete or
vague claim.
complete
claim. X
EVIDENCE Do not provide Provides Provides
Scientific data that evidence, or appropriate appropriate
supports the claim. only provides but insufficient and sufficient
Data needs to be inappropriate evidence to evidence to
appropriate and
sufficient to support
the claim.
evidence
(evidence that
does not
support the
claim. May
include some
support the
claim. X
support the inappropriate
claim). evidence.
REASONING Does not Provides Provides Provides
Explain why your provide reasoning that reasoning that reasoning that
evidence supports the reasoning links claim to links the claim links evidence
your claim. This or provides evidence, but and evidence to claim.
must include reasoning that does not using scientific Includes
scientific does not link include principles, but appropriate
principles/knowledge evidence to scientific not sufficient. and sufficient
that you have about claim using principles. scientific
the topic to show scientific principles.
why the data counts principles.
as evidence.

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 Assessment

Directions: Read each question carefully and choose the letter of the correct answer. Write
the chosen letter on a separate sheet of paper.

1. Which of the following statements about species, as defined by the biological species
concept, is (are) correct?
I. Biological species are defined by reproductive isolation.
II. Biological species are the model used for grouping extinct forms of life.
III. The biological species is the largest unit of population in which successful
reproduction is possible.
A. I only B. II only C. I and III D. II and III

2. Beetle pollinators of a particular plant are attracted to its flowersʹ bright orange color. The
beetles not only pollinate the flowers, but they mate while inside of the flowers. A mutant
version of the plant with red flowers becomes more common over time. A particular variant
of the beetle prefers the red flowers to the orange flowers. Over time, these two beetle
variants diverge from each other to such an extent that interbreeding is no longer possible.
What kind of speciation has occurred in this example, and what has driven it?
A. allopatric speciation, behavioral isolation
B. allopatric speciation, ecological isolation
C. sympatric speciation, habitat differentiation
D. sympatric speciation, sexual selection

3. Dog breeders maintain the purity of breeds by keeping dogs of different breeds apart when
they are fertile. This kind of isolation is most similar to which of the following reproductive
isolating mechanisms?
A. habitat isolation C. hybrid breakdown
B. mechanical isolation D. reduced hybrid fertility

4. A defining characteristic of allopatric speciation is _____________.

A. artificial selection.
B. geographic isolation.
C. asexually reproducing populations.
D. the appearance of new species amid old ones.

5. Rank the following from most general to most specific:

I. gametic isolation
II. reproductive isolating mechanism
III. pollen-stigma incompatibility
IV. prezygotic isolating mechanism
A. 2, 3, 1, 4 B. 2, 4, 1, 3 C. 4, 1, 2, 3 D. 4, 2, 1, 3

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6. Catastrophism, meaning the regular occurrence of geological or meteorological
disturbances (catastrophes), was Cuvier’s attempt to explain the existence of ______.
A. evolution. C. uniformitarianism.
B. the fossil record. D. the origin of new species.

7. During a study session about evolution, one of your fellow student's remarks, ʺThe giraffe
stretched its neck while reaching for higher leaves; its offspring inherited longer necks as
a result. ʺ Which statement is most likely to help correct this student’s misconception?
A. Only favorable adaptations have survival value.
B. Disuse of an organ may lead to its eventual disappearance.
C. Spontaneous mutations can result in the appearance of new traits.
D. Characteristics acquired during an organism’s life are generally not passed on
through genes.

8. Darwinʹs mechanism of natural selection required long periods to modify species. From
whom did Darwin get the concept of Earthʹs ancient age?
A. Alfred Wallace C. Georges Cuvier
B. Charles Lyell D. Thomas Malthus

9. Charles Darwin was the first person to propose ________.

A. that evolution occurs.
B. a mechanism for how evolution occurs.
C. that the Earth is older than a few thousand years.
D. a mechanism for evolution that was supported by evidence.

10. Which of the following represents an idea that Darwin learned from the writings of Thomas
Malthus?
A. The environment is responsible for natural selection.
B. All species are fixed in the form in which they are created.
C. Earth changed over the years through a series of catastrophic upheavals.
D. Populations tend to increase at a faster rate than their food supply normally allows.

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 Answer Key

10. D 5. B
9. D 4. B
8. B 3. A
7. D 2. C
6. B 1. C
Assessment

Answer may varies

What I can Do

10. D. Beagle, not eagle

9. B. All, not new
8. A. More, not fewer
7. D. More, not less; decreased, not increased.
6. B. Population, not community
5. C
4. A. Different, not similar
3. B. Physical, not chemical
2. C
1. C
What I Know

References
Book Sources
Belardo, G. M. 2016. General Biology 1. Philippines: Vibal Group.

CHED Teaching Guide For Senior High School General Biology 2.

Rey, J.D. and Ramos, J.M. 2018. Senior High School General Biology 2

Online References
Darwin, evolution, & natural selection (article) | Khan Academy. (2016). Khan Academy.
https://www.khanacademy.org/science/ap-biology/natural-selection/natural-selection-
ap/a/darwin-evolution-natural-selection
Development of Evolutionary Thought. (2021). Waikato.ac.nz.
https://sci.waikato.ac.nz/evolution/DevelopmentEvolThought.shtml#:~:text=It%20%22e
mphasises%20the%20importance%20of,(Campbell%20%26%20Reece%2C%202002
%3A
Early Concepts of Evolution: Jean Baptiste Lamarck. (2021). Berkeley.edu.
https://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/article/0_0_0/history_09
Evolutionary Biology/Thomas Malthus. (2019). Wikibooks.org.
https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Evolutionary_Biology/Thomas_Malthus#:~:text=Thomas

WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 30

 %20Malthus%20lived%20from%201766,was%20not%20kept%20under%20control.&t
ext=As%20more%20offspring%20come%20into,be%20available%20for%20the%20po
pulation.
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theory
https://www.facebook.com/anupama.sapkota. (2020, May 24). Speciation- definition, causes,
process, types, examples. Microbe Notes. https://microbenotes.com/speciation/
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level/topic-10-genetics-and-evolu/103-gene-pools-and-speciati/isolation-barriers.html
Modern Synthesis | Encyclopedia.com. (2014). Encyclopedia.com.
https://www.encyclopedia.com/earth-and-environment/ecology-and-
environmentalism/environmental-studies/modern-
synthesis#:~:text=The%20Modern%20Synthesis%20describes%20the,a%20unified%
20theory%20of%20evolution.&text=It%20proposed%20a%20new%20definition,the%2
0genetic%20basis%20of%20evolution.
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http://bioprinciples.biosci.gatech.edu/module-1-
evolution/speciation/#:~:text=whether%20individuals%20look%20similar%20(morphol
ogical,%E2%80%9D%20(ecological%20species%20concept).
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https://bioprinciples.biosci.gatech.edu/module-1-evolution/speciation/
Species & speciation (article) | Speciation | Khan Academy. (2013). Khan Academy.
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speciation#:~:text=These%20barriers%20maintain%20the%20reproductive%20isolati
on%20of%20species.&text=Speciation%20involves%20reproductive%20isolation%20
of,due%20to%20a%20geographical%20barrier.

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WBLS-OBE MELC-Aligned Self-Learning Module General Biology 2 31